Sanjeev Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 8

With cash crunch persisting even a month after the November 8 demonetisation decision, the government today announced a slew of measures to incentivise cashless payments.  The 11 measures listed include discounts on purchase of fuel, insurance policies and free railway accidental insurance cover for payments made using digital mode, including debit and credit cards, mobile phone applications and e-wallets.Announcing the package, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said following the cancellation of the legal tender character of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, there had been a surge in digital transactions and the measures announced today would further accelerate the process.“We were using excessive amount of cash and very limited amount of digital transactions till November 8,” Jaitley said, adding the cost of transacting in cash had to be borne by the economy.Jaitley said public sector oil marketing companies would offer a discount at the rate of 0.75 per cent of the sale price on purchase of petrol and diesel if payment was made through digital means. The incentive scheme had the potential to shift at least 30 per cent more customers to digital means, which would further reduce the cash requirement of Rs 2 lakh crore per year at petrol stations, he said.Nearly 4.5 crore customers buy petrol and diesel at fuel stations every day, resulting in estimated daily sale of Rs 1,800 crore. Nearly 20 per cent of the payments are made through digital means.After demonetisation, digital payments have jumped to 40 per cent and cash transactions of Rs 360 crore per day have got shifted to cashless transaction methods.For insurance policies, a discount of 10 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively, will be offered in case of general and life insurance for buying new policies or paying premium online through the customer portals of PSU insurance companies.All railway passengers buying online ticket will get free accidental insurance cover of up to Rs 10 lakh. In addition, passengers using digital mode to pay for railway catering, accommodation, retiring room will get 5 per cent discount.Nearly 14 lakh railway passengers buy tickets every day, out of which 58 per cent are bought online. It is expected another 20 per cent passengers may shift to digital payment methods of buying railway tickets. Nearly 11 lakh passengers per day will be covered under the accidental insurance scheme. For payment at toll plazas on national highways using RFID card/Fast Tags, a discount of 10 per cent will be available to users in 2016-17.To expand digital payment infrastructure in the rural areas, the Centre through NABARD will extend financial support to eligible banks for deployment of 2 point of sales (POS) devices each in 1 lakh villages with population of less than 10,000.Jaitley said it would benefit farmers of one lakh villages covering nearly 75 crore people. The government will also support rural regional banks and cooperative banks to issue “Rupay Kisan Cards”.

Make card OR ONLINE payment, stand to gain…

• 0.75% discount when buying petrol and diesel
• 0.5% discount for seasonal suburban railway tickets from Jan
• 5% discount for railways catering, accommodation, retiring room
• 10% discount if buying, paying premium for PSU general insurance
• 8% discount if buying, paying premium for PSU life insurance
• Rs 10 lakh accident insurance cover if online rly ticket booking
• POS machines for villages with 10K population, 1 lakh selected
• 10% discount for RFID or fastags for highway toll
• Farmers to get Rupay Kisan cards
• Depts to see no transaction fee, MDR charges borne by customers

Transactions up to Rs 2,000: No service tax

• When a customer uses a credit, debit, charge or any other payment card for payment, the merchant is charged certain merchant discount rate (MDR) by the issuing bank. To encourage merchant establishments to accept card payments, the government has waived service tax on transactions up to Rs 2,000.

Rs 90-cr cash, 100-kg gold seized in Chennai

• Chennai: The Income Tax Department raided the premises of businessman Sekhar Reddy and his associate Srinivasa Reddy here and seized Rs 90 crore in cash and 100-kg gold. The raids began in the morning on eight premises here and other places in the state. Out of the total cash seized, around Rs 10 crore was in new currency notes of Rs 2,000. — IANS

Meanwhile, another queue death

Asha Rani

Nikhil Bhardwaj

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 8

A 48-year-old woman died after she was allegedly pushed by a guard outside a Punjab National Bank branch on the Shingar Cinema road today. The victim had gone there to withdraw cash. The road leading to Samrala chowk remained blocked for hours after her family along with hundreds of residents kept the body outside the bank in protest.Asha Rani of Charan Nagar on Tibba road had been unable to withdraw cash since Monday owing to rush or lack of cash, claimed son Parvinder.“On Wednesday, bank officials gave her a token with the assurance that she would get cash the next day without having to stand in the queue. This morning, she again had to join the queue. As she was about to enter the premises, a guard allegedly pushed her away. She fell down and became unconscious,” alleged Parvinder.Family members took her to a private hospital but the doctors refused to admit her. At CMC , the doctors declared her brought dead.Agitated kin brought the body back to the bank and blocked the  road, demanding action against the bank manager and the guard. A posse of police was deployed, even as protesters tried to ransack the bank. Two years ago, the victim had lost her husband in an electrocution incident. Her daughter’s wedding was scheduled for February.

30 days of suffering, and counting

Cash clean-up: Workers losing jobs; business down 40-50 pc; precious man hours being lost in queues

No cash, but there’s a queue: People wait for cash to arrive at an SBI ATM in Sector 17 on Thursday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan P4

Nitin Jain

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 8

It was this day last month that Prime Minister Narendra Modi dropped the bombshell of demonetising currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination.The government may gloat over its decision ostensibly taken to suck out black money but the ground reality remains that people are suffering and the hardest hit are those who are at the bottom rung of the economic ladder.Many a worker has lost jobs, families have gone without food for days, hundreds and thousands of man hours are being lost standing in queues outside banks and ATMs everyday and traders, both big and small, are ruing the fact that their sales are down by 40 to 50 per cent.Rubbing salt on their wounds, banks are refusing to allow them to draw money even up to the ceiling announced by the Central Government. They may not be at fault for the RBI is not able to supply them their requirement of currency but again the harsh reality remains that people cannot lay hands on their hard-earned money they had parked in banks to meet their day-to-day needs.This sums up the sentiment in the tricity one month after the demonetisation announcement made by the Prime Minister.Another major reason behind the public hardship is the Rs 2,000 note, which cannot be used to buy milk, bread, fruits, vegetables or other daily needs.A majority of the vendors and traders refuse to accept the Rs 2,000 note for any purchases below Rs 500 for want of currency notes of smaller denomination.“One month was enough to wipe out the shortage of lower denomination notes in the market but the government has failed miserably,” said an irate Roshan Lal, a retail fruit and vegetable trader in Sector 26.A tea seller in Sector 17, Suresh Kumar, said, “People have stopped having tea and snacks despite winter setting in. Nobody wants to shell out whatever cash he has even after a month.”“Even as the UT Administration is pressing hard for a cashless economy, people have not been so enthusiastic to pay by cards, mobile apps or other e-modes. In the absence of ample smaller denomination currency, we have to daily turn away many customers, who come with a Rs 2,000 note for paying bills ranging between Rs 100 and Rs 500,” said Gurpal Singh, a dhaba owner in Sector 34.A housewife from Panchkula, Rupali Tyagi, who sounded frustrated, said, “Modi had sought 50 days, and now 30 days have passed but the sad part is there has been no significant improvement in the circulation of money.”With serpentine queues outside banks and ATMs refusing to thin out, people have been rendered cashless and are finding it extremely difficult to meet their daily expenses, leave aside making any purchases.A visit to different parts of the tricity this morning revealed that people were still queued up outside banks and ATMs to meet their cash requirements.Upset about banks refusing payments due to the cash crunch, an NRI from the USA, Krishan Lal Aggarwal, said, “For the past four days, I have been returning empty-handed from the Central Bank branch in Sector 22, which runs out of cash each time my turn comes after waiting for over an hour everyday”.“We even stand in long queues outside banks and ATMs where there is no cash hoping that cash may arrive,” rued a student, Amanjot, who was also queued up outside a bank branch in Sector 17.A senior bank officer, who did not wished to be named, said, “Our blood has been sucked by the note ban as we are the ones who are facing the anger and frustration of people everyday despite working overtime for the past 30 days.”An NRI, Aravindakshan, who landed here on Tuesday, said a forex dealer at the airport exchanged his $200 at the rate of Rs 61 per USD against the market rate of over Rs 67. “This shows how forex dealers are also making hay while ‘demonetisation blues shine’,” he rued. Rs 500 note prized possession“It’s been 30 days now, but I haven’t yet seen the new Rs 500 note,” said Aradhika, who was able to withdraw Rs 10,000 on Thursday. She is one of the many who are still vying to lay their hands on the new Rs 500 notes. SBoP DGM Fanish Gupta said due to scarcity, several bank branches were yet to get the new Rs 500 notes. “We have been assured extra new currency on Friday,” he added.

A recent Supreme Court directive has made it mandatory for cinema halls to display the Tricolour on the screen while the national anthem is played. Besides a case of judicial overreach, it reduces patriotism to a religious ritual. Nationalism can be endearing and not merely didactic.

PATRIOTISM AS RITUAL? The audience stands while the national anthem is being played in a New Delhi movie-hall. AFP

THE nationalism discourse which started with the advent of the present  government of the BJP, the political arm of the RSS, at the Centre touched a new low recently. A two-judge bench of the Supreme Court issued a directive as part of an interim order that all films should now be viewed with nationalist eyes. Nationalism has to be drummed into the heads of the cine-watchers by playing the national anthem before the film starts, with all doors closed and the audience left with no option but to stand up and imbibe constitutional patriotism by fixing their eyes on the Tricolour on the screen and sounds emanating from the speakers. The bench does not want a song and dance about nation, so we expect not a fluttering but a stately static tricolour to shame us into nationalism.People are disappointed, questions are being asked whether the learned judges have not overreached in their zeal to nationalise the nation. The most worrying part of the judgment, however, is that the judge who wrote it would be heading the Supreme Court soon. So, we better take a deep breath to receive more of the kind in the coming years. Nationalism is like religion. Are you born religious? Do you get it automatically from somewhere? No. You need to be schooled in the rites and norms of the religion. There is always a suspicion in the minds of the purohits and pandas of the cult that the followers suffer from a permanent lack. They prescribe daily private and periodic collective rituals to keep religiosity alive. Reformers who have tried to de-ritualise religions and get the pure kernel of it are sadly mistaken. Religion without its ritual part is beyond human comprehension.Have you not seen people who fill their notebooks with Ram naam? In our culture, Naam jaap enjoys great respect. But Naam is an abstraction. Unless you put a face to a name it is meaningless. So Naam has to combine with roop. What is the roop, or face of this nation? Before answering this, let us recount a story that is part of our Puranic tradition but which must be a product of the folk genius of this ancient nation that never misses a chance to puncture the claims of high culture. It is about the venerated Narada who keeps chanting “Narayana, Narayana” during his cosmic wandering. One day, filled with the pride of his bhakti, he went to Narayana to stake claims for the post of his first devotee. Narayana smiled and nodded at the demand.  Who remembered him more than him, the hurt bhakt asked. Narayana pointed in the direction of the mortal earth. A farmer tilling his fields! Go to him, commanded the all-pervading life-giver.Narada rushed to the earth with divine speed to encounter his competitor. He followed him closely without being seen. The poor man was busy with his dailyness. There was nothing spiritual about what he was doing. Caught in his mundane existence, the name of the supreme never appeared on his lips. When the eventless day drew to its close, the tiller before retiring to his bed or whatever was there in the name of it, whispered, “Ram, Ram”. Narada was filled with indignation. Only once in a day and that too as a lullaby! And the Lord has the cheek to pitch him against me  with whose very existence is woven the name of the Almighty! Without losing time, he returned to Naryana and asked how could he be compared with the lowly farmer. Narayana  proposed a test. Narada had  to carry a bowl filled to the brim with oil on his head for a day. The condition was that he had to come back to him without spilling a drop of it. Narada was amused but did he have an option to tell his master that this was no way to test his loyalty? He put the oil-filled bowl on his head and started his journey. Constantly aware of the condition, he moved around without letting a drop fall. At sunset, he returned to the all-knowing, filled with a feeling of triumph: he had passed the test.  Despite having cosmic ears, Narayana asked him how many times he had remembered him. Narada was dumbfounded. Not once! His mind was constantly on the oil- bowl and the godly condition. “See, you forgot me completely and how!”In the old story-telling ways, there was always a scope for the moral of the tale. Modern fiction sneers at  moralising, so let us be content with the story. We know that by making him enact a story, Narayana could not mend the ways of  Narada. He still roams around with his veena and his chant and the farmer still goes on tilling his land and from time to time, hangs himself, not by the thread of Ram Naam but with a noose around his neck. Religions have lived through stories. Nations also fictionalise themselves to be communicable to their people. But stories which are written with a mission of moralising bore their listeners. They have to endear themselves to their readers. They have to be humorous, erotic, unpredictable to keep the readers with them while they unfold. A good reader is one who reads his novel at least twice. And good novels are mines which are dug again and again by the readers for new gems of meanings. Nations, to be alive for their people have to have this aesthetic appeal in them. They are a two-way meaning-making exercise. They also have to find meaning in their people. They have to have a sense of incompletion in them, a sense of inadequacy. They wait for new readers. They are unfinished paintings, there always a scope for a new stroke, a fresh colour. They are not sacred , museum pieces  not to be touched and altered. They need to soiled by impure,working hands. Our good lordships know their Ramayana and shastras for they did remember the oft-quoted Janani Janmabhumishcha. They are better advised to visit them again to read them as tales of exiles and think somewhat deeply about the final exile which Sita had to endure. What was the nation of Sita, my lordships? Ram did return to his Ayodhya. But where did Sita return? Why did she not accept the invitation of the Ayodhyapati Ram to come back  and preferred to disappear? How did Ayodhya lose its inviting charm? Read the Ramayanas again my lords, there are at least 300 of them!The writer is a Professor of Hindi at Delhi University.

 

Illustrations: Sandeep Joshi

Yesterday, we at The Tribune made a kind of a new beginning. We had the first of the annual lecture series under the aegis of the Tribune National Security Forum.The Tribune founder, the visionary Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, had tasked the future generation of The Tribune overseers to ensure dissemination of information, knowledge and learning. It was his belief that a society imbued with the outlets and platforms of information was an empowered society, capable of discussing reasonably and rationally great issues of the day and that such knowledge would help society sort out its collective dilemmas.The Annual Lecture Series is a modest attempt to carry forward that mandate of the Founder. It is increasingly being recognised that national security is too serious a matter to be left to only the politicians and generals. And, national security is no longer just a matter of armies facing each other across dug-up trenches; today, national security and national defence are all-inclusive problems. The new tools of social media have empowered the common citizen. Hence, our effort to involve the citizens — and the readers — in understanding India’s defence. And, to kickstart our historic initiative we could not have had a more qualified lead speaker than General Ved Malik, former Chief of the Indian Army. Admittedly, he did a superb job. His formidable intellectual sweep, his keen sense of appreciation of history and geography, and his experience of leadership — in times of war and peace — were very much on display and, in fact, completed the profile of a perfect speaker.Then, we had Professor SS Johl lending his distinguished presence as the presiding officer. He added a non-fauji perspective to the evening. A satisfying evening. A sense of mission renewed and a service performed for society.That brings me to talk about Shivshankar Menon. Shankar is a khandani diplomat. He belongs to a special breed within that special band of men and women — the Indian Foreign Service — and this breed has served India with distinction, panache, dedication, commitment and competence. His grand-father (the legendary KPS Menon, the senior) and his father PN Menon, both belonged to that category of public servants who steered the Indian foreign policy in the early years when a new, independent India searched for its space and place in an uncertain world. And, just to make it a close family affair, Shankar was astute enough to marry the daughter of a foreign secretary. Having served as India’s envoy in Israel, Sri Lanka, China, and Pakistan, he was destined, sooner or later, to become Foreign Secretary and was bound to end up as a National Security Adviser. I was at a dinner when I was informed that Shivshankar Menon had been named as the next Foreign Secretary. I remember cynically commenting to a fellow guest at the dinner table — TK Nair, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister — something about the “Mallu mafia” cornering one more plum job. I was later to learn that Shivshankar was more at home in Hindustani than Malayalam. As a colleague in the Prime Minister’s Office, I found him remarkably cosmopolitan in taste and an extraordinarily well-read man, even for a foreign service officer.So, when he produced a slim book on the Indian foreign policy, I eagerly looked forward to reading it. And, I confess CHOICES — Inside the Making of India’s Foreign Policy does not disappoint. It bears the hallmark of a self-assured man offering sophisticated insights and interpretations on how New Delhi has to deal with the external world, a world that is demanding, exacting and not a whit impressed with our nightly self-flagellation. Shankar has chosen a clever format. He has selected to meditate on five defining moments in our recent foreign policy; his excuse is that he has cherry-picked these because he was involved with these momentous moments and can, therefore, speak with a certain degree of personal knowledge and authority. Fair enough. We will grant him his choices.But what I found exceptionally impressive was that each chapter is preceded by two or three epigrams — ranging from a ninth-century Baghdad wazir, to Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Gandhi and Buddha. These epigrams provide the cautionary preface to the crises discussed and how these were dealt with. A very pleasing exhibition of learning and erudition. Foreign policy has always been a matter of prime ministerial initiative and action. The prime minister’s personality matters. Shankar writes: “Personalities matter. With a different mix of people at the helm, it is quite possible that India would have chosen differently. In fact, if India is forced to make a similar choice in the future, I am sure, it will respond differently.”With great subtlety and sophistication, Shankar debunks our current obsession with the idea of a strong prime minister as a panacea for all our problems at home and abroad. On the contrary, he argues that “The corollary to the central role of the prime minister in decision-making is weak institutionalization of foreign policy implementation in India. Weak institutionalization is reflected in weak policy implementation.” Simple. Deadly accurate. Not to be wished away, even if a million social media tweets get generated in praise of Modi. His wisest of observations is reserved for the last few pages when he raises a simple question: “Why should India want to be a great power?” Yes, we need to be a great power because we simply cannot be a satellite to any other power. But this pursuit of great power status cannot be a foray into megalomania or xenophobia: “Power is the ability to create and sustain outcomes. Weight we have, our influence is growing, but our power remains to grow and should first be used for our domestic transformation.”

Touche`

Millions of words have already been written about Fidel Castro since he passed away on November 26. Some words were kind and indulgent, but most commentators chose to focus on his association with the failed model of communism. However, I think part of his charming appeal for generations all over the world is because he had dared to stand up to the US. In that defiance, he had for company only two leaders — Ho Chi Minh of Vietnam and Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran. They refused to give in to the United States’ post-war hegemony and the demands that hegemony made on friends and foes alike. Ho Chi Minh and Ayatollah Khomenini could defy and get the better of the US because they were revolutionary leaders of sizeable countries, but Castro’s Cuba is a tiny island, very vulnerable and always within America’s reach. That made Castro’s defiance dangerous — and alluring.That Castro was handsome and young only added a touch of charisma to his defiance of the US and he became an embodiment of iconic opposition to Uncle Sam. He remained unbent and unbowed till his death. And that will remain the core of the Castro mystique. We in this part of the world were fascinated by the Nabha jailbreak. It became a national headline because a known Khalistani activist was among those who broke out. The so-called KLF chief soon got caught and the national interest in the story ebbed away.Though as a law-abiding citizens all of us must firmly disapprove of anyone escaping a prison, it needs to be recognised that a jailbreak takes considerable planning and application of mind. It requires daring, resources and an untamed mind.A jail is, after all, a daily contest of wits and ingenuity, guile and cunning between the jailor and his staff and the prisoners, who resent their incarceration. The equations are sorted out with violence and bribery; and, the police force does not always come out as the winner. In Punjab, it seems it is a thorough mismatch. Most of the high quality prisoners have patrons among politicians and are allowed to have a run of the place inside the jails. On the other hand, the police force is overloaded with incompetence, low morale, and lower morals.The Nabha jailbreak has a wider dimension. It should be a matter of considerable alarm for any national security manager that convicted secessionists, criminals and gangsters are effortlessly able to remain in touch with friends and patrons outside, including those across the border. Though these guys are able to lay their hands on almost everything in the jail, I am pretty sure they cannot get good coffee. Nor are they going to get an invitation to join me for a cup. Anyone else?

kaffeeklatsch@tribuneindia.com

Former Army Chief says surgical strikes should be classified as tactical rather than strategic ops

From left: Gen VP Malik (retd), former Army Chief; Dr SS Johl, agro-economist and former Vice-Chancellor, PAU; and Gurbachan Jagat, Trustee, The Tribune Trust, at The Tribune Security Forum annual lecture in Chandigarh on Saturday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 3

Former Army Chief General VP Malik today predicted limited border wars with China and Pakistan. The General also said the “surgical strikes” post the Uri terrorist attack should be classified as tactical in nature because “we did not go deep”.(The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) “Par itni dholak bajai ki woh strategic operation lagta hai,” he said, referring to the government’s chest thumping.The architect of the Kargil victory was delivering the First Annual Lecture on “Defence at 70: Yesterday and Tomorrow” organised by The Tribune National Security Forum here.

 (The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd).

In the new age of Brexit, Trumpism, heightened nationalism and unpredictability, no one can give an assurance that nuclear and high-level convectional wars, despite very high costs, casualties and geopolitical pressures, cannot be ruled out. However, there are greater chances of asymmetric, hybrid and limited border wars with Pakistan and China due to unresolved boundaries, he felt.

A large number of eminent citizens, including senior armed forces officers, police officers and members of the academia, attended the event.

Photo Album: Defence at 70

Cautioning that new security-related problems can emanate unexpectedly from unexpected quarters and in unexpected forms, the former Chief of Army Staff stressed upon greater politico-military interface and multi-disciplinary vertical and lateral consultations for faster decision-making.

He said that national security decision-making and higher direction of military conflicts in the current strategic environment cannot be dealt with using water-tight compartments. “We need many changes in the national security structures, processes and procedures which can make it more efficient, resilient and speedily responsive,” he said.

Pointing out that in the past we had failed to convert hard-won operational achievements into long-term politico-strategic successes, which reflected poorly on India’s strategic vision guidance and lack of coordination among civilian and military leaders, he said that lack of political guidance on important security related issues, excessive dependence on bureaucracy and marginalisation of professional and critical stakeholders’ militray advice at the highest level of decision-making continues to be a major handicap even after 70 years.

Stating that in recent years cyber and space domains have added another complexity as cyber attacks on critical civilian infrastructure would have got far more significance than damage to military targets, Gen Malik also pointed out that after 70 years we still import nearly 70 per cent of our defence equipment. “With the latest increase in foreign direct investment and the ‘make in India’ push, it will take 20-25 years to make up the deficiencies with a reasonable level of modernisation,” he said.

General Malik also pointed out that in order to attract talent to the armed forces and overcome the officer shortage, the government should review the terms and conditions of service so that they are more in line with the prevailing socio-economic trends and better attuned to meet the aspirations and requirements of the present generation.

Presiding over the function, Prof SS Johl, former VC of PAU, said while a country’s diplomatic strength was very important to avoid a war, the defence machinery was also very important so that one can negotiate from a position of strength. While observing that strong commercial relations between countries can lessen the chances of war, he added that strong internal security and good governance were also key factors in ensuring peace.

He said building up the defence machinery and fighting wars also creates economic difficulties and inflationary pressures as a large amount of money is spent, but no product enters the open market.

Referring to the 1962 debacle where the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru forced an unprepared army into a conflict, he said that it was very dangerous to start any sort of  war without adequate preparation. “If we are strong internally, and economically, we automatically become strong externally. I hope better sense prevails on the political leadership and they ensure operational preparedness of the armed forces,” he remarked.

Former police chief of J&K, Governor of Manipur and now a Trustee of The Tribune, Gurbachan Jagat opined that in future, nations could go to war over several issues including sharing of water resources. War, he said, encompasses many facets beyond military power that include economic strength and internal stability.

The Editor-in-Chief of The Tribune, Dr Harish Khare, spoke about the ideals and principles set out by its founder, Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, 135 years ago, which continue to remain the guiding force for the publication. He also read out the first editorial carried by The Tribune.http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/community/limited-border-wars-more-likely-gen-malik/331836.html

As far as People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy ships and submarines are concerned, the Indian Navy keeps a close eye and monitor their movements. We have maritime domain awareness of the deployment of PLA naval forces in the Indian Ocean region SUNIL LANBA, Navy chief

NEW DELHI: The Indian Navy said on Friday it was aware of the deployment and movement of Chinese naval ships and submarines in the Indian Ocean region, and that it has “kept a close eye” on them.

Addressing the annual Naval Day news conference here, Navy chief Sunil Lanba said a Chinese nuclear submarine was deployed in the Indian Ocean and it did a port call at Karachi harbour.

“As far as People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy ships and submarines are concerned, the Indian Navy keeps a close eye and monitor their movements. We have maritime domain awareness of the deployment of PLA naval forces in the Indian Ocean region (IOR).

“We launch surveillance missions in the form of aircraft and ships to keep a track of them. They had started deployment of their submarines from 2012,” he said.

The Navy also termed as “bogus” the claims made by Pakistan that an Indian submarine had entered into territorial waters.

“There was no Indian submarine deployed in the area where the Pakistani Navy is claiming it to be. As far as repelling a submarine of any nation goes, it is not an easy task and the claim made by Pakistani Navy is totally bogus. We deploy submarines where there is an operational necessity and we will continue to deploy them,” Lanba said.

The Pakistani Navy had last month claimed that it had prevented an Indian submarine from entering its territorial water. The Chief of Naval Staff said India’s primary area of interest was the IOR followed by Strait of Bab el Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz.

NAGROTA/NEW DELHI: Army chief General Dalbir Singh visited the Nagrota-based 16 Corps headquarters on Wednesday and was briefed about Tuesday’s terror attack in which seven officers and jawans were killed.

Meanwhile, the Border Security Force (BSF) detected a narrow tunnel in Chamliyal area of Jammu on Wednesday, which it suspects may have been used by Pakistani infiltrators who were killed by the force a day before. The channel, which is extremely narrow and seems to be man-made, is the fourth tunnel detected in the Jammu area since 2012.

The BSF suspects the three heavily-armed infiltrators the force killed a day before may have crawled inside India using the tunnel to attack security installations in the area.

After the operation ended at the Chamliyal border outpost, the BSF started checking the fence in order to see where it was breached. The BSF detected an 80-metre long tunnel in Chamliyal area in Ramgarh sub sector of Samba district. This was the fourth such tunnel found along the IB since July 2012 In March this year, a trans-border tunnel originating from Pakistan was detected 30 metres inside India near Allah Mai De Kothe post in RS Pura sector of Jammu district JULY 2012: A 540-meters long trans-border tunnel was detected near Chalyari post of Chachwal village in Samba sector AUGUST 2014: Tunnel that ran 50 meters inside Indian Territory was detected in Pallanwala area of Akhnoor sector.

The Nagrota attack is considered the second biggest attack on an army cantonment after Uri.

The army chief spent around 25 minutes at the site of the encounter before heading back to Delhi. Earlier, he laid wreaths before the mortal remains of the seven soldiers at the technical airport in Jammu. The Nagrota attack is considered the second biggest attack on an army cantonment after the Uri strike on September 18.

Tribune News Service

Hamirpur/Bilaspur, December 25

Ex-servicemen of Hamirpur and Bilaspur districts are happy with the implementation of “one rank, one pension” (OROP), but want the issue of parity in status with IAS and IPS officers sorted out.However, shrinking job opportunities for ex-servicemen after they are discharged from the service or voluntary retirement is a major issue and as the number of ex-servicemen seeking jobs is much higher than the jobs available.“No doubt, though ex-servicemen have been benefitted financially after the implementation of OROP but the key issue of parity in status with IAS and IPS officers remains to be sorted out,” said Brig BD Dogra.Julfi Ram of Lehri village in Bilaspur, who retired as a Sepoy, said he had received two instalments under “one rank, one pension” in March and August 2016 and was benefited to the tune of Rs 1.13 lakh.Kaur Singh of Domahar village in Ghumarwin, who took retirement as a Subedar, said though the instalments had been received, the revised pension benefits from January 2006 had not been given. “The basic pension was raised to Rs 10,400 after 2006, but I am getting basic pension amounting to Rs 8,425 and in case this anomaly is not rectified, we will have to approach the court”, said Rajender Prasad, who retired as a Havildar in 1996.Two widows of Domahar village, Vyasa Devi wife of Nardev Singh and Parvati Devi wife of Budhi Singh, said they had not received the enhanced pension after the implementation of OROP. “We have not even been told how much pension will be disbursed under OROP,” they said.The ex-servicemen, based in their villages, were not in touch with developments taking place with regard to the implementation of OROP and other issues concerning them. They said a quarterly newsletter should be published and circulated among ex-servicemen to keep them abreast with the latest developments.“While in service we were told that there were so many jobs for ex-servicemen, but the ground reality is different. There are fewer jobs for ex-servicemen and even the Sainik Welfare Boards are not able to do much and we are facing problems in bringing up our children and meeting other liabilities after leaving the Army,” said another ex-serviceman Dyal Singh of Hamirpur.Ranjit Singh, who retired as a Havildar and takes care of the Sainik Welfare Board at Ghumarwin, said there would be difference as the arrears would be decided as per the length of the service but at least the Modi government had fulfilled the promises made to ex-servicemen.

The Global Times article says New Delhi should accept tht olive branch extended by Pakistan

Beijing, December 23

After a top Pakistan general surprisingly invited India to join the USD 51 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, state-owned Chinese media has advised New Delhi to accept Islamabad’s offer, pitching that such an opportunity could be of benefit to all involved.“New Delhi should consider accepting the olive branch Pakistan has extended in a bid to participate in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, said an article in the Global Times, adding that there is a possibility that the open attitude toward India joining the CPEC would quickly be overwhelmed by opposition voices from Pakistan if India did not respond in a timely manner.

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It said that since India’s primary strategy was to promote economic and social development in the Kashmir region, the best way to reduce hostilities was by establishing economic cooperation based on mutual benefits to put aside what could not be reached by a consensus.It claimed that China had no intention of using the CPEC as strategic leverage to intervene in Pakistan and India’s dispute and that it would rather adopt an open attitude towards New Delhi joining the CPEC.It said that as India is ramping up efforts to integrate itself into global manufacturing chains, the country could boost its exports and slash its trade deficit with China via new trade routes that would be opened up by the CPEC. ANI

IT was 1998 and I was commanding my regiment, 63 Cavalry, at Patiala. I was travelling by Shatabdi to Ambala after a brief visit to Delhi. My fellow passenger was a simple man whom I did not know and recognise. He was trying to read a Hindi newspaper and was immersed in his thoughts. He didn’t seem to be well  and looked decidedly uncomfortable. On my request, the train examiner made an announcement for a doctor, but surprisingly, except for an odd neem hakim, no one came forward. At Karnal, I insisted that the old man was given proper medical attention at the next station, Ambala Cantt. The railway staff reluctantly agreed to arrange for a doctor, who examined and treated  him at the next stop.As I took leave of him, he thanked me and invited me to visit Rock Garden, which we did in the form of a regimental picnic. We had the ultimate pleasure of being shown around by the creator and hear his story. My regiment had its share of station responsibilities, which entailed beautification and aesthetics, but there was no financial support. We decided to tap Nek Chand, who most graciously agreed to train a couple of our soldiers in the basics of his art. He visited the regiment to conduct a training workshop. He was thrilled to take a tank ride and got himself photographed in the cupola. After his visit, a number of Nek Chand statues sprang up in Patiala and our Station Commander termed it ‘Nek Chandisation’. For want of a better term, they were referred to it as Nek Chands — like my regiment would say that we have installed a dozen Nek Chands at the Golf Course. The children took a liking for him and called him ‘Rock Star’.My association with the grand old man proliferated his art to places where I served, including Nagaland, Sikkim, Hisar, Babina and Bhopal. Every time we sent a team, he got them skilled, creating a pool of trainers, all ‘gratis’ due to his love for the armed forces. As he aged, his involvement reduced, but he always visited the trainees at least once. Whenever we de-briefed our boys, they were full of praise and sense of involvement of the great artist, who genuinely believed in skilling others. He was also a practical teacher, who innovated new utility-oriented figurines, like traffic cops, to substitute and economise on manpower. His forte remained recycling of discarded waste material, maintenance-free creations at a low cost.Last year, before he passed away, we installed some Nek Chand statues at Shivalik Golf Course in Chandimandir. His figures stand as a testimony to his contribution to functional aesthetics in military stations. To a great friend and real Rock Star, who would have turned 92, here is a ‘General salute’, richly deserved for his contribution to society and special love for the forces.